Murray State was actually one of the tougher non-conference opponents Auburn had slated this season, but the Tigers were able to get past the Racers with relative ease on Wednesday.

Allen Flanigan returned and Auburn got some big performances from Wendell Green Jr., Jabari Smith and Walker Kessler en route to a 71-58 win.

Wendell Green Jr. is making a case for the starting lineup...

Wendell Green Jr. began the season in the starting lineup, but Bruce Pearl opted to swap him out for K.D. Johnson in the Battle 4 Atlantis.

Well, flash forward about a month and Green is playing some really good basketball and making a case for getting inserted back into the starting lineup.

In the last four games he's scored 19, 12, 15 and 13 points, including a double-double on Wednesday with 10 rebounds. He was a game-high plus-25. And don't forget the SportsCenter Top 10 halfcourt shot he sunk.

Zep Jasper, meanwhile has scored six, eight, five and zero points in the last four games. Obviously Jasper's biggest strength is his defense, and that's been crucial for Auburn, but it's hard to deny what Green is bringing to the table right now.

Who starts doesn't really matter all that much because minutes will be roughly split and whoever's hot will finish the game, but it'll be interesting to see against LSU and moving forward if Green and Jasper get swapped.

It'll take time, but the return of Allen Flanigan is big...

Everyone knew it was going to take time. But the return of Allen Flanigan and his 12 minutes against Murray State were a huge positive for this team moving forward.

They weren't the best 12 minutes, as he shot 1-of-6 from the floor and finished with three points and four rebounds, but it was always going to take time. It'll take time to get back into playing shape and to get a little less gunshy and back to his confident self.

"I thought Al looked like he belonged out there," Pearl said. "He’ll play a little bit more as we continue to progress.”

The positives were clear, though. Auburn can eventually insert another really strong defender into its starting lineup and be able to improve on the offensive end, too. It should make life easier for Devan Cambridge in a limited role off the bench where he's asked to do a little less.

It might not happen until the end of January and maybe even into February, but once Flanigan is back to 100 percent and playing a normal minute allotment, this team is something scary.

Impressive rebounding turnaround...

Auburn got crushed on the boards against Saint Louis and it almost cost them the game. Bruce Pearl wasn't pleased and said it needed to change.

It did.

Auburn won the rebounding battle 48-33 against Murray State.

"We got outrebounded badly at Saint Louis and Saint Louis was the more physical team," Pearl said. "It was important tonight that we do a better job on the boards. Wendell Green with 10 rebounds, that’s crazy for a guard — nine defense.

"Jabari Smith with 10 defensive rebounds, just tremendous. So our rebounding totals were better and our physicality was better."

With the strong turnaround on the boards against the Racers, this team proved that the Saint Louis game was more of a fluke and less of an issue going forward.